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Saturday, January 30, 2010

The Awakening by L.J. Smith

Book DetailsThe Awakening by L.J. SmithPaperback, 272 pages2009, HarperTeenISBN: 0061963860Series: Book 1 in The Vampire Diaries

SynopsisIn book one of the Vampire Diaries, Elena Gilbert is a high school golden girl, the one boys want and girls want to be. And Elena is used to getting what she wants. But when she meets handsome, haunted Stefan, he struggles to resist her because of his dark secret: Stefan is a vampire. Stefan is torn by guilt over his past, but he also has a dark, dangerous vampire brother, Damon. Soon Elena finds herself torn between two vampire brothers-and in terrible danger.

ReviewThe Awakening is your average vampire novel. Everything was heating up nicely and it looked like the book was going to be some thing to get excited about. Elena is self-centered. Stephen is a tortured soul. Damon is sadistic. Put the three of them together and watch the fireworks. Just when you got to what should have been the climax of the story, the book abruptly stopped. There was nothing more, the book just ended.

I get that The Awakening is the first book in the series and that the ending is supposed to entice the reader to pick up the next book. Unfortunately, that's not what happened here. The book is incomplete. It's as thought the last couple of pages were torn out. It ended with the promise of action instead of any form of resolution or conclusion. I don't expect a series to tie up all the lose ends in every book, but I do expect a complete story.

What there was of the story was good. It felt as though things were really going to get exciting. They still may, later in the series. The Awakening is only worthwhile to read if you are willing to commit to the next book, if not the entire series. I was already planning on reading the series, start to finish, but I'm afraid all of the books are going to have the same problem. The book was good, not great. A book can't be great without an ending.

I haven't read this one yet, but I'm planning to this summer. It's good to know that the ending is not much of an ending going into it. I just finished a book that ended abruptly (also first in a series) and it's got me a bit frustrated because I wanted the rest of the story. (I don't have the next book yet, so I'm going to have to wait to find out what happens.) So, I know the feeling!

I have the paperback one, which was sold with the second book as well, just as Tara SG had said. It helped, with the first book's abrupt ending and all. It felt like the second book was the second part of the actual book. I hope that made sense :P

I actually like the (book) series, but I also like the TV series, which is very different from the books.